Desolation
by Gank Hunter
Summary: As universes tend to do, the Cosmere and the Wormverse are on a collision course. Well, maybe it doesn't work exactly like that. But regardless, Earth starts to get strange visitors. Taylor Hebert is doomed to fate as always.
1. Chapter 1

No knowledge of the Crossover is needed.

This is something I've wanted to do for a while, and admittedly it is the first fanfiction I have ever written. It's not just an alt power. Elements of the worlds will tangle, hopefully.

Journey 1.1

I banged on the locker door one last time. It was an act of quiet desperation, as I knew that school was already out and I could no longer see light through the cracks in the metal door. Hours ago, I had stopped my desperate clawing and screaming, since it was clear that nobody had come and nobody would. The storm of emotions and thoughts and hysterical fury against the trio inside gave away to resignation, but not before I struck the side of the locker once more, hard. I could hardly feel the sharp scrap of metal or the warm blood against the sludge. Oh shit... I hefted my arm out of the slimy, bug ridden mass, holding it as high as I could. The height of the locker prevented me from standing straight in it, instead I was held in a posture that could not have been good for my spine. At once, my nausea began to mount and an unbearable headache pierced me. oh shit. I'm going to die. I'm gonna die I'm gonna die...

Suddenly, I felt a skittering presence on my limbs and a dry whispering sound. My muscles began to ache and my eyes fell shut. But even through my eyelids, I could see those terrible and disgusting shapes. Black and barely the size of a fist, I could somehow see them. They had many scuttling little legs and eyes as red points of light. Death. Death gathered in clusters, skittering towards my mouth. But then, it came. One of those things, but a cloud of blue and white light, resembling a small figure with a sword. It swung and drove the things back, ceasing the whispers. I leaned forward and blacked out.

Staring at the dull white ceiling of my hospital room, I contemplated the last few days at the hospital. Or, at least the last few days I had been awake. I was unconscious for several. The first thing I noticed was that I still felt sick. Whatever they had done made the toxic shock wear off, but I knew the bill would be high. Dad came in a half hour after he heard I was awake. It was just what I expected, with his infamous temper after I told him what happened. He'd stayed with me for hours, but left for something urgent. That had been expected. At the time, I was still overwhelmed and nauseous, the little scuttling death things forgotten along with my tiny glowing savior. When I ran the events through my head, I remembered the things. I was alive, but I was certainly going crazy. Damn it, I thought, this just had to happen. It was just then that I'd seen a trace of red just as my exasperation flared up. It almost looked like blood, but it was boiling up from where my body touched the bed. Horrified, I dipped a shaking hand into it, only to feel nothing. Glancing around, I noticed bright blue ribbons dancing in the wind, and out of the corner of my eye, a trace of purple on the ground. I passed out.

Little minions of death. Skittering and whispering. Covered in filth. I was breathing them in, tasting the sludge. My eyes snapped open and I screamed. Immediately, a nurse rushed in.

"Are you okay, dear?" She asked, concern apparent in her features and small, barely visible purple tendrils waving near her. Wait. what?

"I'm ok. I'm fine, I just had another nightmare."

"I see. Don't worry, your father is coming to visit you later today. Try and get more sleep, okay?"

"Okay." I mumbled. With that, she walked two steps and out the door of my tiny room. I sighed, lying back down and unfortunately noticing those things again. Over the past few days, I had started thinking properly. As soon as that happened, I realized! I was a cape. What other thing could explain the strange visions that nobody else could see? I had always kind of wanted to be a cape, thinking back to my Alexandria action figures. Only, this power was absolutely useless. I had noticed specific types of visions. The purple tendril things appeared near people feeling lots of fear or worry. The blue ribbons appeared only outside my window, when the wind picked up noticeably. All the while, I felt some sort of pull towards all of the visions, but I couldn't place it. I had seen all the other visions too infrequently to name them. Except.. Except death. Those things had to be death. The blackness, the terribleness, the glowing red eyes and feeling of dread. Thinking of that led me to think of my glowy savior.

"Taylor?" a soft, girly voice called from somewhere.

I jumped and spun around. For a split second, I thought the nurse had come back in. But standing (or rather, floating) right in front of me was the one and only glowy spirit girl thing with the sword.

"What.. how. How do you know my name?" Was all I could manage.

"I don't remember much. But I was watching you, Taylor. I saw what those girls did. It was horrible." She hovered up and down idly as she talked. Her lower body faded into a vague blue cloud, and her face was a shifting image.

"I just.. don't know how I know that much. Spren aren't supposed to remember anything!"

"Wait", I interjected. "Spren? Is that what these visions are called?" I gestured to the window, where the blue ribbons were currently passing.

"Yes.. I'm one of them. I'm a windspren!" As if to prove it, she turned into a ribbon and flew around as I gawked.

"Only, I don't fade away. I'm me. I don't know my name, because I shouldn't have one, Taylor. Don't you understand? I feel smarter now. There's a connection between us, I can feel it. It only got stronger when I fought those Deathspren for you."

"Okay. Either I'm insane, or this is a really weird power."

"Hey! is that how you talk to your friends?"

 _don't have any..._

I turned away in irritation, although I was admittedly growing fond of my uh, spren, even if she was a bit bubbly.

"Okay, but how am I going to become a hero? What is this power?"

"Let me try something." That was all she said before she slipped into what looked like a trance. And disappeared.

A moment later, a hefty weight appeared in my hand. A six foot blade manifested into my right hand, destroying the fabric of the blanket where they met. It glowed an eerie blue and had ornaments etched into it, leading up to a wicked hook at the end of the blade.

Too shocked to say anything, I simply just sat there gaping at it until my spren transformed back.

"Well? Are you not impressed? Be careful though. It's a very deadly weapon." She had warning written on her face.

"Wha. You mean _you're_ a deadly weapon."

"I'm not only that, Taylor. I'm intelligent. And I remember."

I interrupted. "I just.. I'm kind of having a bit of trouble believing this. Just.. What's your name again?"

"I don't know. I'm not a person. Or at least I wasn't? But I know all this about the Oaths, and... I remember being somewhere else. Somewhere... not like this place."

"Well, If we ever go out there, you'll need a cape name. "

She cocked her head and began pacing through the air. "What's a cape?"

I giggled. "It's someone with powers. Like us, but someone who uses them for something, has an identity and costume and all that. Let's see. You could be Fog! No wait, that's dumb. Oh! Mist."

"That works!"

We both sat still for a moment, thinking of our courageous future acts of heroism. Of going out and changing things. What I've always wanted to do.

Mist looked at me again: "Taylor, you know, I can feel the thing between us growing. I used to be like one of those windspren out there." She gestured to the window behind my bed, where the blue ribbons still flowed past.

"But now that I found you, I remember so much more. I think I came from a place far away from wherever this place is. Where there were these huge storms and there would always be thousands of windspren passing by. I remember because I followed this person who intrigued me. I became more than just a windspren." Her expression grew somber. "But then, somehow, I was torn away from this man. I found you. You always drew me in. How you stood up to those bullies. I wasn't too aware at the time, I don't think, I was barely aware that what they were doing was wrong. My bond to you grew stronger every day, much faster than it had with him." She zipped up to my ear. "But you couldn't see me or any other spren, Taylor. That was until I saw what.. what they did to you. I fought off the Deathspren."

I listened to all of this in awe. What was I? What was she? I knew already that I wasn't just any normal cape.

Mist started to talk again. "Taylor, I know what you are. I know, somehow.. You're a bringer of justice. A _Knight Radiant."_

It was almost as if I knew that word.

"They were emotionally broken people. But people who didn't give up despite that. And most of all, they were warriors who fought against the desolations. Monsters. _Voidbringers._ They fought for good."

In my mind, I saw a vision of the Endbringers.

She stopped hovering and stood completely still. "Their values. Life before death. Journey before destination. Strength before weakness."


	2. 12

New chapter is here. (a bit short) More critique, especially on my writing is always appreciated. Any comments on prose, pacing, characterization or anything related to writing skill is welcome. This is my first fic, after all.

1.2  
With a pencil in hand, I put the finishing strokes on my first sketch of another one of these otherworldly spirits. These ones glowed faintly with silver light, about the length of my fingers. They took the shape of small objects, although I wasn't sure what correlation that had with what the spren represented. They had appeared when I was drawing the other spren I had seen. Oddly, they had also appeared while I was drawing them. After thinking on it, I decided to label them as _'artspren'._

 _"Small spren that glow with a faint silver light. Attracted to drawing, most likely also the creation of art. Finger length, take the shape of household objects that always move..."_

a short time after I got out of the hospital, I'd decided that I'd keep a journal or record of all the aspects of my powers. It had been two weeks since that day, and one thing was clear. Even with Mist around, I knew nothing about my powers.

I'd never heard of any hero with powers like mine. Over the past two weeks, I had been going to the library every odd day to do extensive and tiring research on capes. The PHO forums and wiki yielded plenty of knowledge about the cape scene.

For one, nobody quite had a companion like me. There was this "master" cape classification, but most of those guys seemed like they were taking forceful control of something more than allowing an actual relationship. At least some of them were masters of their own constructs, not living things. I can't imagine how I'd fare if I had a power like that.

The topic of companionship shifted my thoughts away, and my brain idled for a moment before finding what it wanted to think about. My thoughts were on Emma as I set down my pencil and reclined in my chair.

Friends, Best Friends even, was the term anyone would use to describe Emma and I before that one summer break two years ago. If I were asked what I thought about friends, I would say that they were essential to life, or at least life as a kid dealing with school and the pressures of simply growing up. Emma and I were not just friends, but BFFs. So imagine how crushed I felt when that intimate sort of relationship was thrown away by her, replacing me with that bitch Sophia.

All the aches and pains I'd revealed to Emma over the years had been thrown at me like spitballs. So it would be an understatement to say that I am now wary of friends.

How I hated this school. It may sound like I'm whining. I am whining. I am also the one who chose to go back to school after staying home for a week, only broken by that one meeting at the school. Dad. Principal Blackwell. The trio.

Just as I'd expected, even though dad's temper had been unleashed fully, the settlement was looking grim and we were expecting something just enough to pay the hospital bills. Maybe with something extra on top because I'd _almost died of toxic shock._ As dad had been keen on repeating.

On the topic of Friends, Mist was the closest I had since Emma. The windspren could be annoying, yes. She was childlike and asked questions and played pranks. But she had saved my life. That had to count for something. I was still a little wary given the fact that she could transform into a very dangerous looking blade, and when I looked back, I realized that I had been hasty to trust this ethereal stranger so easily.

then, there was the more worrying part. Mist claimed she could see me at school, and she stuck around long enough to learn my name. That could've meant that Mist wasn't a construct of my power, and neither were these spren. When I gained powers, it just allowed me to see and interact in some way with this hidden aspect of the world. And guessing from the fractured memories that Mist had revealed earlier (she claimed she didn't know anything else) this hidden aspect had not always been here.

If anyone noticed, they were silent about it. No search on PHO had revealed results regarding any sort of strange spirit sightings.

"Taylor, Breakfast!"

My musings were interrupted by my dad calling me to eat. I had been making breakfast less often now.

He pulled me into a hug as I descended the stairs and went into the kitchen.

"Hi, dad." I took in the scent of bacon and eggs. "That smells great."

"Thanks kiddo." He looked pretty worn down already. Yesterday seemed like a particularly hard day at work.

"Just.. be careful at school today, ok?" Guilt looked etched into his face.

"Yeah, sure. Don't worry about me, dad." We were both unwilling to move the conversation to heavier topics, as we'd already talked about those plenty of times.

We ate without a word for most of breakfast, exchanging a few as I grabbed my bag and headed off to the bus to school. As a walked in silence, the neighborhood was just seeming to wake up. I half heard, half saw the blue ribbon approaching and smiled. Maybe the school day wouldn't be so bad.

During locker time, I'd generally just milled around as I hadn't been reassigned a locker. I wasn't sure if I even wanted to. In any case, the classes without Emma, Sophia, or Madison in them had gone great. I'd handed in my art project and spent most of computer class browsing PHO.

An important revelation had happened during Mrs Knott's class. Mist could recall her real name. It was Syl, or Sylphrena as she'd timidly told me. She had generally improved my mood and encouraged me on my mission to raise my grades. (I did catch some students and teachers shooting me looks, though...) I thought I owed dad at least that much, after handling our situation so badly. Besides, I could request a transfer to Arcadia high more easily. Just the thought of going to a school without empire and ABB goons sold me.

Now I was in Mr. Gladly's class. I didn't care much for him, and gym was next. In this class, I had to be constantly on the lookout.

"The big question of this unit is: How have parahumans effected the economy both here in the city and elsewhere in the world?"

I almost considered raising my hand. When he turned away to write the question down on the board, I saw Madison preparing a spitball in the corner of my eye. _Well shit,_ I thought. A moment later, a barrage of spitballs flew from all directions. I closed my eyes, and suddenly felt lighter. The classroom lights seemed to have a half second of dimming as all the spitballs missed. I breathed in. No, this wasn't me getting lucky. I had somehow discovered an aspect of my power. There was a small amount of what felt like pure light and energy flowing in my veins. It stopped after a minute. Mr Gladly pretended not to notice the prank.

After another lunch in the bathroom, I was at gym class. I enjoyed running, and I would have enjoyed Gym if the trio wasn't in it. Like most of the other teachers, Mr. Cogan didn't seem to care about bullying in his class. I had to stifle a laugh as Syl flitted around his head as if examining him.

"Four laps of the field, now!" Everyone set off for the same warmup we'd had for probably 100 classes in a row. Syl warned me as the trio approached. Little did they know, I'd taken in some of that light, holding it in as best I could. When Sophia flanked me to trip me and Emma approached from behind, I leaned close enough to touch Sophia.

Suddenly, she tripped on nothing as her shoe stuck to the ground for a split second. Emma, caught by surprise, fell face forwards. Syl's crystal laugh reached my ears as I continued as if nothing had happened. She flitted around my head, keeping pace with me. The prank we planned had gone perfectly. I would high five her if I could.


	3. Chapter 3

I have a question. Does this story fly over the head of people not familiar with stormlight?  
Anyway, new chapter. A longer one this time.

1.3

I was quickly walking towards the Docks South after another afternoon spent at the Brockton Bay public library, Syl at my side. I had somehow managed to last through the few days of school I had to endure before the weekend came by. My dad had bought it when I told him I was going for a run after studying at the library, telling me again to stick to the boardwalk.

I was headed to the north ferry station, a part of the docks with plenty of winding alleyways and empty warehouses. It wasn't really ABB territory, though it was close to that corner of the city with plenty of nightlife and a casino I suspected was ABB owned.

I figured that going to the library wasn't going to help me discover my power in any way. So I set a time and place where I wouldn't be discovered. Then, after realizing the full potential of my powers, I could decide what to do.

Remembering the time and tempted by a rush of excitement, I broke out into a run. Anticipationspren fanned in the air around me, sensing the excitement.

Running always had been something therapeutic for me. I knew I'd never be as good as Sophia, but if I wanted to do the slightest thing with my powers, I had to get into shape. Unless I wanted to hide my powers forever. I was sure that there was an abundance of people with powers who were not capes of any sort in poorer countries.

Trigger events were one of the many things I had researched on PHO over the weeks since I first gained my powers. Sure, in places like the CUI where people were supposedly persecuted for having powers? Many people probably tried to just cover it up. But here in America, the narrative was that any person with powers was obligated to use them. I wasn't hesitant to believe the theory that the PRT would rather have people being villains than simply not using their power.

The other thing preventing me from ignoring my power or simply being a rogue was multifaceted. Both my past and Syl encouraged heroics. I glanced at her, and she appeared to be running in the air, matching my steps perfectly. She grinned back at me.

Syl may have been childlike at times, but every day she seemed to grow smarter and smarter. After exploring the city, she had many questions, expressing dismay at certain things. Syl seemed to have a special sort of disdain for lying and suffering. On the other hand, she was fascinated with heroes.

"Are we almost there yet? I want to see what we can do." She said, while keeping pace with me.

"Yeah, just a few more blocks."

"ughh.."

I smiled and my excitement mounted as we crossed 52nd street. The buildings past that street looked newer or at least better maintained. The roads seemed straighter and the people there happier. Shops were open on both sides of the street and there were even street vendors shouting out their wares.

My Dad had told me that this was once what all of Brockton Bay was like, back when he loved the city. Now, only pockets of wealth existed in places where businesses were not _that_ affected by Leviathan.

Lost in thought, I almost collided with a hotdog vendor's cart as I rounded the corner.

He looked up, noticing me, blue eyes twinkling.

"You know, It's never good to be in such a hurry. You look rather tired..."

The vendor was a tall man, his face angular. He might have appealed to me if he was my age and I was looking for that sort of thing. I couldn't place his age, but he didn't look over mid twenties.

"Would you like to buy a refreshment? Perhaps an afternoon snack to aid you in whatever you're running off to, miss?" He finished.

I was about to refuse, but my stomach was honest and I was rather thirsty. After fishing around in my pockets, I retrieved seven dollars. It was enough to buy a cola and handmade hotdog.

Syl flitted over to the other side of the cart, watching in curiosity. The vendor didn't use one of those machines to cook the sausage. Instead, he had a grill and spatula, a workstation filled with many sauces and spices. He hummed as he crafted the food.

"So. How has the world treated you lately?" He spoke while preparing the topping and the sausage at once.

"Well.. to be honest, not that great, but it's been better the past few days. Why?"

"Why? That's a question I can't answer. It's a deep question that the greatest minds can't answer.

What was this weirdo on about? I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes and just waited patiently. The grill was producing a rather large cloud of smoke now. It rose about the man's head but was still thin.

Then, the curls shifted. Within the volume of smoke, I thought I could make out a figure, shining despite the texture of the smoke. As the smoke swirled again, it was as if the scene shifted. The figure was surrounded by darker and more voluminous foes and fighting them, causing the smoke to roll and swirl in turbulence.

 _Wait, what the fuck? How? It looks.. too real. How is this guy still selling hotdogs?_

"H..h... how are you doing this?" Syl seemed to have an equal reaction.

"Doing what?"

"Your figure.. though the smoke. It's really cool. Can I see more of it? How are you doing it? You can keep the change if you show it to me."

He raised an eyebrow. "I'm glad you like my figure. I'm afraid I don't offer.. those kinds of services though I don't judge those who would pay to see such a show."

My face heated up and I turned to go. Fuck that. He wasn't getting my money. I was sure the angerspren were showing.

"Wait! Wait! Please come back, I let my wit take over."

If I wasn't so hungry, I would have just left. He waved away the cash. And just handed over the food.

"No need for that."

"That wasn't wit." I snapped. "If you were so witty, you'd know how to say something clever _and_ keep your customer."

"You're still here."

I sighed. "Why are you giving me this for free?"

"Again, the why. I don't have much more time, friend. This meeting wasn't just by chance, and I have something to ask you. Do you ever feel that something is not right? With all the thinkers and tinkers in the world, yet it still has many problems. In this free land, an "empire" still exists. Is it the nature of man, or something else? That's something to think on. I'm not clever enough, it seems, since I haven't figured it out yet. Maybe you will. Soak in every sunset in this dangerous place, friend. It may be your last. "

He fished around under the grill on his cart until he emerged with a cloth bag. I took it from him as he offered it. It was _heavy._ As I opened it, my jaw dropped. The bag was filled with gemstones of all types. They were in a rough spherical cut, and I thought I could see diamonds, emeralds, and several I couldn't identify.

"Take it, friend. I won't waste much time on talking. These are for your abilities. You can infuse them with stormlight, and they will last for a long time. Take them in case you can't absorb any stormlight, or if you ever need an extra boost. Of course, they'll help if you need a few coins in your purse."

"If we ever meet again, my name is Hoid." With that, he turned and lowered the wheels of the cart, pushing it down the street where the waters of the bay were visible in the distance. He turned the first corner into an alley and was gone.

Still not sure what to think about the encounter, I glanced down at the gift he had given. So many gemstones in that bag. I really wasn't sure what to think after that strange meeting.

Syl reappeared next to me. "I don't know about that man... He's strange. I tried to follow him into the alley, but he somehow disappeared before I could see him in the alley. The cart's gone too."

"How is this possible, do you think he's some sort of cape?" I asked.

"I hope not. He seems to be nice enough. I found nothing bad in that bag he gave you."

If he was a cape, I had just outed myself to a potentially dangerous person. But I doubted it.

The confusing encounter left me tired. I knew I still had to practice my powers. Picking an out of the way alley on the other side of the street, we walked until we met a wooden fence. Excited once again, I told Syl to be ready. There was a bulky looking electrical device here, where a power line flowed into a building.

 _"Life before death, strength before weakness, journey before destination."_

 _"I will protect those who cannot protect themselves."_

 _"I will protect even those I hate, so long as it is right."_

Those were the oaths Syl wanted me to say. No wonder she was so against my desire for vengeance, even if it was small. Setting my mind off that, I focused and _changed_ the current electricity flowing in those cables into the light. Stormlight, the vendor... Hoid, had called it. It was a colorful bright cloud of what seemed like gaseous light.

I absorbed it, breathing it in. I could stop the flow inwards if I wanted to. After a few seconds, I absorbed as much as I could. My arms and legs glowed, and my senses became a little bit sharper. A wisp of light escaped my mouth.

 _"You look so awesome, Taylor!"_ Syl said into my mind, surprising me.

The little bit of soreness I had accumulated disappeared. I took off my glasses. I didn't seem to need them when I held Stormlight.

I gave a yell of utter freedom. I'd never felt better, but then I remembered that I couldn't be discovered.

Suddenly breaking into a run, I accelerated unbelievably quickly, trailing light. I could turn and stop at high speeds easily. I made it back to the wooden fence in three big leaps. Now, it was time to try something different.

Syl reminded me of the time I'd stuck Sophia's shoe to the ground, and caused Madison's spitballs to avoid me. I saw an abandoned trash can at the middle of the alley. In one bound, I reached it and in the same heartbeat I grabbed it with no effort. The corroding metal felt as light as foam. Focusing, I infused some of the light inside me to the trashbin.

A tiny bit of it escaped me, and the trashbin was stuck. A bit of light shone between the can and the wall.

 _"Taylor, you did it! We did it! See?"_

I let out a genuine laugh of happiness.

There was one last thing to try, and the stormlight in my body was slowly escaping. I focused, trying to do the thing where Madison's spitballs gravitated away. I felt the thought become action, and my feet were lifted off the ground before my world turned upside down.

I screamed. Syl seemed to struggle to keep up. By the time I realized what happened, I was already at the height of a five story building overlooking the city. In a panic, I pulled myself downward with a lashing. I stopped and hovered, finally turning right side up.

I couldn't afford to let anyone see me like this. So I lashed myself downward to the ground, letting gravity retake me and then some. It was a mistake. I fell back into the alley at what must have been five times gravity given my panicked flailing. I hit the ground hard, afraid to look at the crack I just caused. But I was fine. A fall that should have killed me left me with some pain in my back.

The pain disappeared, and the last of my stormlight drained in my breath. A worried Syl flitted up,

 _"I' m fine."_

It was time to go home. Much had been accomplished today. I was running out of excuses and getting better at my power.

Maybe it was time to be a hero. 


	4. Chapter 4

The Jeweller held one of my emerald spheres up to the light, scrutinizing it with discerning dark eyes. After a moment, he handed it back to me.

"Yeah, sorry about that. Just had to check, Y'know? It's real emerald, just like you said. You won't get much for it anyplace, it's just a little chip anyhow."

"How much would you say it's really worth?" I finally said.

"Well, you mean how much I'd give you for it? Probably one-fifty. But really it's probably worth two hundred."

Unable to resist, I dug Hoid's gift out of by pack and onto the countertop. The middle aged Jeweller's back straightened a bit in surprise.

"They're family heirlooms." I lied, smoothly.

He nodded. "Like I thought. Seems like you've got more than just emerald in that bag of yours. May I?"

After telling him sure, he dove into the panels under his desk, muttering to himself. I took the time to look around, noting the items on shelves. The man didn't just deal with Jewellery, it seemed. I wondered if I could buy a something off him for a better costume.

In the few days that had passed since that somewhat disastrous field testing, I'd made great progress with documenting my power. I'd also pawned off a few gems at another store to give me a whopping total of about five hundred dollars, used to buy pieces for my costume.

There was a great security supplies place downtown that sold a lot of the pieces I needed. It'd been convenient too, since Dad had taken me out to dinner that Saturday, an unusual activity for him. Perhaps he'd decided to do it as an apology to me, even though I'd assured him that he had done all he could.

If he'd seen me smuggling the stab vest at any point, if would have been game over for me. I felt like I'd used up all my luck for the year. Along with a cheap motorcycle helmet and some supposedly bulletproof fabric from an apocalypse prep pawn shop, I had all I needed. To be honest, I had no idea what I was doing. I'd simply sewn the fabric to the outside of a pair of jogging pants. Maybe, I thought, I could paint on it.

Seeing a trail of blue light in my zoned out eyes, I snapped back to attention, thoughts interrupted. It was Syl, looking as radiant as ever. She flitted through the air, stopping next to the Jeweller's cash register.

 _"Where were you off to? I told you not to stray too far away."_ I pushed the thought to her.

 _"Oh, sorry. I just needed to know what was in that back room. It wasn't much. Just piles of stuff this man's been hoarding."_

Before I could say anything, the Jeweller emerged from below the surface of his heavy wooden desk.

"Listen here, ma'am. I've seen stuff like this before, and I know where it most likely comes from. A few months back, I had this guy come in with a few perfectly round diamonds. Now diamonds are damn hard to get perfectly round."

I felt a chill coming in.

"He came in regularly and I kept buying them low. I guess he didn't care, he could just keep coming. But as it turns out, he was running an unauthorized tinker shop in his garage. Toybox's got him now. I just have to tell you, you can't do this without a license or the PRT'll get on your ass."

before he could say more, I cut him off.

"Okay. I get it. I guess I'll go now."

I grabbed the bag from the counter and walked swiftly out the door.

"SHiit." The fact that the Jeweller suspected that I was a Parahuman was bad enough. He might have even wanted to report me if the PRT had rewards for it, but I doubted it.

The sun was starting to sink behind the horizon, the old concrete buildings in this part of town drawing long shadows in the twilight. Soon, it would be completely dark, and the nightlife of Brockton Bay would show itself.

Scanning around me, I chose that moment to duck into a nearby alley. It was generous to call it an alley when it was little more than the space between a mechanic and a closed warehouse. Struggling on uneven terrain, I finally reached a spot where the dark consumed me while Syl kept watch.

Lowering my pack, I hurriedly tore into it, obtaining my vest, helmet, and modified pants. I'd also added a hooded dark blue robe to the costume just because it fit the blue flames I'd spray painted on the helmet. It'd been my mother's.

At that moment, I felt alive with energy and excitement. As I ducked back onto the sidewalk, I almost commanded Syl to turn into the enticing six foot blade she'd shown me that day at the hospital. But the people there were already scared of me, giving me a wide berth and wary looks.

Understandable. Even to a cape geek, I'd be a total unknown.

bright neon banners flared in the distance, advertising bars and nightclubs. People walked with purpose and a limousine passed me on the road. In the distance, I could see the Ruby Dreams casino, the one Dad and I thought was definitely ABB owned.

Breathing in a lungful of crisp night air, I remembered that I could fly.

And fly, I did. Sucking in stormlight from nearby power lines, I repulsed the ground. For me, gravity was now up.

My power was strange, definitely. One aspect was my ability to change the direction of gravitational pull of any object. That included myself. I could make things gravitate towards either another object or direction. The length of the changed gravity depended on how much Light I spent on it, going back to normal after the Light ran out.

The possibilities had already presented themselves: I could simply bind one person to another, bind a gangster by tapping him and making him fall down a street as if it were a long shaft.

I had also discovered that I could infuse an object with stormlight and have it imitate gravity, pulling other objects towards it. That required constant contact, and the only real use I'd thought up was grabbing people so they'd be unable to escape. Not particularly heroic.

Lastly, I could infuse a surface with stormlight, spreading it out like jam. Anything that came into contact with that glowing jam would stick there, bound to it until the Light ran out. Any attempt of pulling bound objects by pure physical force had resulted in nothing but achy arms. Most importantly, I could spread the Light by spraying it at a distance.

Then, there was Syl. She appeared to have exhausted all topics of conversation, staying alert at my shoulder. I didn't know what her blade form could do, but it did look threatening if it came down to that.

I wasn't flying particularly high, just high enough that I could scan the streets and narrow paths from above while looking for any suspicious activity. It was my first night out, and I only hoped that I could stop some petty mugging by the ABB gangsters who were known to appear here occasionally.

I chose this spot specifically so that I wouldn't meet any capes. After all of my research on PHO, I'd decided that this part of town, closer to the boardwalk, was safe from Parahuman presence. There had never been a recorded cape in this particular area.

Even though I glowed with a full dose of Stormlight, the light pollution of the area I was circling was probably enough to hide me. Signs and lamps advertised businesses like Asian restaurants and nightclubs and liquor stores, all in the same concrete complex. The light of the city grew towards the boardwalk, where a semi-circle of darkness indicated the Bay.

However, to the west and north, the lights grew thinner. I gave up circling and bound myself north.

And there! under the pale illumination of a street lamp, I could spot a group of people in a circle with one individual in the middle. Before I could be spotted, I lashed myself downwards one street away. While granting me powers, the Stormlight gave me strength, stamina, durability, or an increase of all of my physical traits to a great degree.

Careful to keep quiet, I crept towards the gathering, drawing myself towards the wall.

 _"Syl? Go over. Tell me what you see."_

 _"Alright."_

The feminine figure morphed into a blue ribbon.

 _"There are eight guys here, seven gathered in a circle around one. They aren't being very nice. They're... Pushing and hitting the one boy in the middle. All wearing red and green except for him."_

So a forced recruiting, or some kind of twisted initiation by the ABB, the most feared gang this side of the city.

 _"Weapons."_ , I mentally ground out.

" _Most of them have knives. One has a gun, Taylor, you've got to be careful."_

I took a deep breath and sprang into action.

"Hey! let him go!" I shouted as I drew in stormlight.

A mistake. I should have just swept in and lashed the gangbangers one after the other to the wall.

The one with a leather jacket laughed, drawing his gun in one smooth motion. Instinctively, I jumped out of the way, feeling the heat of the bullet zooming right past my ear. _Shit._

Alive with energy now, I closed the distance towards leather jacket erratically, zigzagging and propelling myself off the concrete. I lashed myself twice to the wall of the alley, my feet striking him in the face as he missed another shot. The wall had become "down" to me, drawing me into it. I pulled out and hovered.

"Fuck! Cape!" came the panicked screams of the others as they scattered like roaches into the dark.

I relaxed, noticing that leather jacket was unconscious. Turning towards the kid they were probably about to kill, I saw that he had run already.

 _Well, shit. At least I can go home knowing that I saved someone._ Justice had been served. I turned and repulsed the ground, looking to head home as discreetly and quickly as possible.

Two blocks away from my first act of heroism, the thrill began to fade and relief began to set it.

It was at that moment that a dark shape came tumbling through the air, nearly striking me. I bound myself to a roof, narrowly missing two more of the massive projectiles.

I struck the roof hard, rolling in a decisively graceless manner.

Groaning, I sprang up again, shaking badly. The size of a van, the dark shape resembled a mutant dog with spines and growths coming out of its skin. There were tangles of bone and knots of muscle in strange places. Two more of the creatures jumped onto the rooftop a heartbeat after I'd noticed the first one. Syl flitted around with fear. I watched as riders slid easily off the backs of the impossible creatures. There were four of them, it looked like two girls and two guys.

Seeming to glance at each other, they approached carefully. I became aware that I was still glowing.

"The fuck was that? You messed up my landing!" The guy in the white mask spoke. It was too dark to make out the details of his costume.

"Shut up, Regent." The tall one said. He wore dark motorcycle leathers and a helmet, styled to look like a skull.

"So, you're new. First night out?" He asked. "You're a villain, by the looks of it. Here's a word of advice. Stay away from this part of the city. It's too close to the boardwalk, and they don't want any capes messing with the tourists."

Then, it clicked. These guys were _villains?_ And they thought I was one too? I didn't know what to say.

 _Why are they here, then?_ Syl offered.

"Yeah? Why are you here, then?" At that, one of the girls shifted noticeably.

"Oh, we're here for a bit of a job. No harm in telling, it'll be all over the news tomorrow. We're going to the Ruby Dreams casino, our biggest job yet." he paused for several long moments. "I don't think there's any harm to introductions. I'm Grue, that's Tattletale," He pointed to the girl behind him, the one with long blonde hair and a domino mask. "That's Bitch," He gestured to a girl in rough clothes and a dog mask.

"Last and definitely least, that's Regent."

"Oh fuck you, Grue." Regent spat with a chuckle. He was the one who had complained about almost killing me with his dog monster.

Tattletale spoke up. "So what're you calling yourself?"

"uh, I don't really have a name yet." I said weakly.

Grue nodded. "Now that introductions are done with, I think we've gotta scram."

My legs started to feel weak with relief.

"Ehh... not so fast, Glowy Girl." Tattletale said with a smirk. "Your little friend hasn't introduced himself yet."


	5. Chapter 5

1.5

"She's got somebody with her? Where?" Grue turned quickly to look in all directions. The rest of the villains stirred uncomfortably, steeling themselves for a possible attack.

Tattletale looked oddly focused. "Some kind of Master? No, not that. But she does have a friend. One that she communicated to. Not a threat. Something that she knows other people can't see? Won't see? Stranger power? She doesn't like her friend being seen." A predatory grin spread on her face.

"Oh shit, wait." Tattletale clutched her head.

She.. She could _see_ Syl? No, clearly not, but she was some sort of thinker. I needed to get away from her and the other villains before she could figure out too much.

"Tattletale? We need to move, clock's ticking." Grue spoke up, concern evident.

"No, we've got time. Plenty of time. So, I'm just going to ask you this. We could use some help. Mind joining us?" Confusion was evident even through masks. Grue was looking at her like she'd messed up a line at a school play.

Before I could think clearly, "No! I'm not even a villain, okay? I came out here to be a hero. I saved a guy from ABB thugs a second ago."

"You sure about that? Those seem like villain colors to me. Are you sure that you're not just confused?"

It was then that I realized what she was probably doing. She was asking me questions and gauging reactions, probably trying to get information. I tried not to reveal anything. She merely laughed.

"Okay, guys. The hero's ready to fight us now. We better scram. Bye!" With a sigh, the rest of the villains mounted the grotesque creatures and they were off within moments.

I was still shaking with adrenaline, replaying the encounter over and over in my head. At least those villains were gone now. I had no idea how I'd deal with all the dogs, let alone any other of their powers. The thrill of conflict fading, I turned to go.

The next thing I felt was my chest exploding in pain as I saw a dark tip suddenly protrude from it. I screamed, and in the same breath I drew in my emergency stores of stormlight from the gems tucked away in my costume. I whirled backwards.

Almost by raw instinct, Syl formed from cold mist into my hand, shearing the figure behind me in two effortlessly. It fell to a pile of ash.

My thoughts were made clear by pain. _Oni fucking Lee. Oni fucking LEE._

A heavy boot came from above, stomping on my right hand with ruthless precision. Syl deformed.

Oni Lee grabbed my shoulder and turned me around, laying me flat on the hard rooftop.

"You are one of the Undersiders?" The demon smiled down at me, speaking in a clipped voice through his mask.

Lung's lieutenant betrayed no emotion, acting as if he were a machine.

Gritting my teeth, I spat the words. "No. I'm.. not.. I'm not one of them. Wasn't... going to attack."

Oni ignored my vehemence. "Where are other Undersiders." he said in an even tone.

 _Taylor, listen to me._

Oni had me pinned with his knee on my stomach.

 _Just breathe in. Now. There is enough stormlight in the roof cables under you._

Seemingly impatient with me, he drew another knife. Maybe to finish me off. I breathed and the light flooded me, giving me a boost of final strength.

I lashed him away from the roof, and he fell up with a surprised grunt. Tumbling through the air, he accelerated. Another Oni appeared on the roof, phasing into existence. He wasted no time, a dull thud registered on the floor near me. _Grenade._

Even as the Light boosted my senses, an Oni appeared behind me. Sharp _woosh_ es came from all around, some missing as they went whistling past, some bouncing off the stab vest. It had worked this time.

Before the grenade could tear into me, I repulsed the ground, thoughts cleared. I charged for a nearby rooftop at several times the force of gravity, fighting only for survival. Syl formed once again.

Slamming into a window of an adjacent office building, I drew in massive amounts of Stormlight.

Syl cleaved the waiting Oni in half, his eyes burning briefly before collapsing into ash. The swings were effortless, and I hacked wildly around me. More Onis began to appear, some in cubicles, waiting to pounce. The others unhooked grenades, advancing on me in a tight circle. Retreating indoors had been a mistake. Lee clearly had the advantage here.

My swings were desperate, graceless. Simple and without form. In an instant, I extended Syl's length by thought, sweeping through the swarm at neck level. A dozen Onis collapsed into pale ash.

Knowing that he was most likely already out of the building, I launched myself away, shattering another window. This was impossible. I'd have to just retreat.

But Demon Mask had other plans. As I was climbing straight up, a rough pair of hands gripped my robe. I climbed faster and faster. Higher and higher. Lee held on, teleporting to my other side, then back again, clinging to his own clones. They all began to unhook grenades as a swarm larger than I thought possible gathered.

He was really trying to kill me. My mind screamed at me, the Stormlight burning in my veins.

 _Life before death!_

Why kill me? Why risk his own life so much? Why work for _Lung_ of all people?

We were now higher than the clouds. The real Oni, realizing his fate, jumped. He would be able to teleport to safety after he caught a glimpse of the skyline.

I swerved midair, the harsh G-forces throwing the clones off of me as the first of them detonated. using a complex series of lashings, a fluid grappling hook, I manoeuvred like a fighter jet. Lee was there. Falling. Diving straight downwards, minimizing drag, probably hoping that I wouldn't get to him. A false hope.

The villain was going down. My only thoughts were drowned out by pure survival instinct, Syl's being almost merged with my own.

I slammed into his form with my feet first. It was _so satisfying._ The thrill ran in me as I danced around his helpless falling form, landing strike after strike.

I formed Syl.

 _"No."_

I hesitated.

 _"Taylor, stop. You're killing for the thrill of battle! This isn't right! "_

I noticed that we were dangerously close to the ground, so I grabbed Lee by the wrist and slowed us rapidly.

It took several moments after I dumped the unconscious villain in a heap to realize what had just happened. For my full brain to process the last few minutes. I felt drained, utterly, and the reality of the situation set in.

I was so, _so stupid._ I shouldn't have gone out today. The surge of final energy faded. I looked down at myself. The robe was tattered, and half of it was completely gone. There was a small hole in the front of my stab vest, but I could feel no wounds or pain. It was as if the fight had never happened.

I glanced behind me at the casino. It seemed that the villains, the Undersiders, as Oni had called them, had already made their strike. They were probably gone now, using their dogs for quick transport or whatever else they had.

Police cruisers had already appeared all over the street, and crowds of people exited through the neon lit front entrance. PRT vans were pulling in as well.

 _"Taylor, you should probably hand him over now."_

Still in shock, I nodded and picked up the still unconscious villain. I noticed that he was bleeding heavily. We had landed on a slight incline, a few blocks away from the rooftop where I had met the Undersiders. With ease, I launched myself up again with Stormlight aided legs, before heading towards the ABB casino.

Now, the danger was over. I began to calm down, feeling the wind.

"Syl? What would have happened if I killed him with you? Would I have broken an oath?," I said softly.

"I don't know. But I think it would have weakened our bonds if you did that. And if they were weak enough, I would return to being a mindless windspren. And you would be left.. powerless."

"Oh." was all I could say.

Looking to the scene at the casino, I could only hope that nobody had been seriously hurt or killed. But there were a few people being carried on stretchers to waiting ambulances.

There was even a cape here. Armsmaster, by the looks of it. He was near a gathering of police officers on one side of the street, asking questions.

I chose that moment to intrude.

"Uh.. Hello?" I said, weakly.

Armsmaster turned to me, and the officers backed up.

"Who are you?" He asked, before gazing down at the body in my arms. "Is that.. Oni Lee? Dead?"

"Oh, no, not dead. I fought him until he got knocked out. I'm new. This was my first night out."

"I see. " He regarded me warily. It was probably because of the fact that I was covered in blood and a tattered robe. The dark colors didn't make me look particularly heroic.

"What's your name?" He asked.

"I haven't really decided on one yet."

"You need to come with me for questioning, mainly about your encounter with Oni Lee and what exactly your relationship with the new villain group is."

"Alright."

He took Oni from my arms, cuffing him. Then, he placed him on a nearby stretcher, talking into his helmet.

"First of all, did you happen to encounter the Undersiders tonight?"

"Yes. I was patrolling, and I broke up some sort of gang initiation or something by ABB. I planned to go home, but the Undersiders were coming in from the east, using their dogs to travel on rooftops."

"Hmm, yes. Hellhound.. go on?"

"I.. I was flying at rooftop level when one of their dogs almost hit me. I crashed on the same rooftop they landed on, and their leader.. Grue? Decided to talk to me. They said they were going to hit the casino and all that. They had a thinker. Tattletale. She.. was trying to figure out my power when Grue got impatient and they moved on."

"So where did Oni Lee come in?"

"I think Tattletale must have known." Anger flared within me. "She must have known that he.. Oni Lee was coming, so she got everyone out of there without warning me. Maybe she figured that I was strong enough to take him out. I did, but I was almost killed."

I proceeded to describe the entire battle to him. After I finished, he paused to think.

"This is why the wards program exists. If you have an interest in joining, just call me." He handed me a card.

"Credit for Oni's going to go to 'an unknown cape' ", He said.

"I've got to get going." With that, he marched over to a PRT van. In my descriptions of my powers, I tried not to mention anything about Syl or having a companion. I wasn't a master and didn't need the PRT getting the wrong idea.

It looked like my job was done for the night. Wearily, I turned and headed home. Spren wriggled in the air around me, probably signalling exhaustion.

I didn't want to walk the whole way.


End file.
